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Responsibilities as a tenant

How to be a good student housemate. Living with others can be challenging, but a little consideration and respect can go a long way and set you up for life.

It’s a rubbish job…

Take the bins outside! It takes two minutes to empty the bins, yet it can take weeks to get rid of the smell and the potential pests and vermin attracted to it.

Empty the bins in your house when they are full, or start to smell – whichever comes first!

Bins in Canterbury are collected every two weeks – depending on household waste, or recycling. Remember to put the correct bins out the night before and bring them back in again the following day.

Don’t forget to bring your bin back in again once emptied. If you don’t, you may find that your bin has mysteriously disappeared and bins are not cheap to replace!

The award you don’t want to win as a student | Teenager wins Britain’s dirtiest student house after dad got her to enter competition

It's a balancing act...

House parties are good fun, though are not always fun for others. Be considerate of your neighbours and housemates and remember that a little respect goes a long way.

Other people live in your house besides you and other people live in the house next to yours as well. What you consider to be a ‘sick tune’, your neighbour, or housemate(s) may not. Keep this in mind.

Please do your best to keep noise to a minimum between 11.00 pm and 7.00 am. These are considered unsociable hours. While you may not have uni, or work the next day, others may do and everyone deserves a good nights sleep.

Did you know that if you are considered to be a noise nuisance and disturbing others in the neighbourhood, you could receive a visit from Canterbury City Council, the Police, or even face an on the spot fine?

Still in the mood for a party? You know what they say: work hard, play hard. So why not head out to one of the many clubs or pubs in the City?

Food piracy – it’s a crime!

They say free food tastes better than paid food, though what may be a splash of milk here, a few slices of bread there and a bit of pasta there soon mounts up to the person who’s paying for them.

If you haven’t got something, don’t just take it without asking. Ask if it’s okay to do so.

Sharing is caring and is a good way to taste new foods and help your housemates out when they haven’t got that one ingredient to finish their meal. They may even share a portion with you as a thank you!

Did you know that shopping together and sharing is typically more cost-effective and less waste? Why not give it a go next time you go shopping with your housemates?

Be mindful not to take advantage of someone's kindness though. No one wants to go to make breakfast in the morning only to discover that there’s dust at the bottom of their cereal box! Noooo!

Our house – your home!

While having your friend, or partner over to the house to stay is okay from time to time, it is courteous to see how your housemates feel about it.

Remember that you all pay bills and rent, your friend, or partner doesn’t and an extra person in the house for long periods of time using facilities not allocated to them may cause tension.